While searching Youtube and the Net for more info on the Guitar Heroes World Tour band set 4 (in particular, the drumkits), I chanced upon these 2 great clips:
I think those who were in the military bands before and fervent enthusiasts of rhythmic & performance drumming will appreciate the amazing skills and showmanship :D
Feel good song - 'Sugar We are going down' by Fall Out Boy
hehehe... no MTV here but a drum lesson video which I'm trying to learn some of the patterns but check out that cool move (stick spin) he makes @ 2:17 - 2:19 into the lesson.... the song is pretty upbeat and yet he has the time and accuracy to do that trick... super Flair man!
After JX introduced this song to me a while back, I was quite hooked to it so decided to learn this song by heart... this song just simply grows on you when you listen to it..
His vocals are just too good sia....
since the last time I saw these 2 talented singers performed on stage, they have been doing pretty well on their own :)
(蕭敬騰 - 世界唯一的你)
it's a tough fight between these 2 contenders but from this song alone, you can tell how powerful his vocal strength is... undoubtedly the hairstyle must go but he does have a very unique voice.
I'm not a true-blue audiophile but I know what are good sounds and what are good audio frequency response in speakers (thanks to what I studied during Poly as a Film, Sound and Media student)
After reviewing and studying and sampling many multimedia systems throughout the past few months, I have finally decided on the BOSE Companion 3 (Series II) coz of its sweet tweeter response to the highs and the amazing rich lows from the bass... and the thing about BOSE, you can be very sure of the sound quality being one of the better ones out there....
So was with Char Siu Bao today in Parkway Parade for some afternoon coffee and decided to pop by the JuzzOne Mac Shop to have a look-see and voila! The set is going for a sweet price (compared to the Mac shop in Wheelock) and so, it's a go from there... :P
Music never sound any sweeter than this.... :D
*Will run in the speakers for the next few months to get the tweeters seasoned up....
When Char Siu Bao introduced me to this fantastic Japanese Jazz band a few years ago, I was instantly hooked by their music and their amazing musical talents. They are so amazing 'tight' in their harmonies and parts that listening to them is akin to hearing a very well orchestrated symphony! And we are talking about a 4 members band here!
Although they have not been very active on the music scene nowadays but their music is evergreen with their versatility. And it's really a refresher for me everytime I pop their CDs to listen as there's just so much to learn from their techniques.
When we was in Japan, it was with great joy that I managed to get my hands on their CD : GiG 25 (2 Disc 'LIVE' edition). Taipei's major music stores have ceased distribution of their CDs therefore this chance to get their CDs while in Japan was like finding treasure!
For electro Jazz band aficionados, here's why I love this band:
yes, they look very 80s but hey, it's the music that counts. Ohh did you notice, NO MUSIC SCORE!
Watching Akira Jimbo play is like watching a magician performing a complex trick right before your eyes. A huge waste that I didn't attend his drum clinic when he was here in 2005 but I managed to catch Will Kennedy's as well as Kenny Hogan's. To watch them play 'Live' is really a humbling experience as they are so cool with their effortless rifts and patterns. And to learn some of their drumming tricks is indeed eye-opening. I managed to chat with Will Kennedy the other time and was really amazed that he was really young and yet already on the international scene.
Here's one of Akira Jimbo's drum solo (1986) -
speechless...drum solos are not always about speed and the number of concurrent things you can play on the drum set but the ability to control what you play and form a singular musical composition with precision on the instrument.
Here's another spectacular video of a Bass Solo Battle between Yoshihiro (Mr Mustachio) and Tetsuo .. man, the things they can do with just the Bass!
I always feel that the bassist and the drummer are like the left and right hands of a band :)
I love her voice... a good balance between strength and feminine. Her vocal range is amazingly good. Not at all easy to go super high-pitch without losing both strength and key but she can do it!
only thing is that she may need to work a little on her slight off-keys at ends of low keys
It has been a really wonderful weekend starting Friday when I went over to Laissezfaire's place in the afternoon to help her with the postproduction of some of the selected photos for the Pupsik baby pouch and was invited to a Russian-Italian fusion dinner complete with wine, cuppucinno and cheesecake!
The russian soup, which I have yet to find out the exact ingredients and name, was one of the most amazing soup I ever had! It has primarily tomatoes, pitted olives, pickles, onion (I think) and a dollop of sour creme in it and it really tasted really good! hahaha... I was quite tickled that Russian cuisine has such high salt content but coupled with rye bread and sardines, the palette was well balanced. I can so live in Russia but still, no neat vodka (no matter how good it taste after a spa)
Played with Vera for a while and man, she has really grown quite a bit. Now she can stand up and walk about the house, climb up and down the sofa and zooms around in her little toy car.. much to the parents' delight.
* thank you very much for having me around, SL and V, I really enjoyed the whole experience and the very delicious fusion food!
SATURDAY:
Saturday was a late start coz I slept rather late around 4 plus am in the morning. By the time I got up, it was about 12 hours later... (yes, the good food and the wine did made me fall into a blissful slumber) with a buffet dinner @ Latitude, One*15 marina club with the in-laws and then meeting up with the 'Bao' family @ Barracks in Demsey Rd.
It was as always a great meet-up with everyone as we exchanged updates and had plenty to drink. Shot quite a few shots on the polaroids (have to scan them in 1st). The night ended around 1am but the funny thing was even after 2 reds, 1 white, 2 hoe gardens and 2 shooters (I must remember to try the Japanese Traffic Light shooter again), I was still wild awake and was so till 4 am this Sunday morning. I didn't feel intoxicated but was kinda craving for soup around 3am.... hmm.... tried to sleep and only managed to do so after 4.30am.
SUNDAY:
Woke up around 8am this morning to get ready for band practice in church. Met up with the new bass player, Adi, during practice and I must say that he really reminded me of my good friend, Bassrocker aka Char Siu Bao.
The way he plays, his sensitivity to score parts and his intuitive fill-ins on the bass was just so similar to playing with Char Siu Bao when we were playing together. He is a very talented musician who self-taught himself the bass and is really good with the guitar. Very blessed to meet him and it was truly a pleasant experience playing with him. His free-style playing is really amazing... precised fingering and fluidity in his playing with confidence and being experimental really make me wanna improve in my playing also.
Here's a very interesting Youtube Video which I am trying to learn up - Freestyle funk drumming.
飞儿乐团 (F.I.R)'s latest album - <<爱。歌姬>> is simply irresistible.
A new direction from their past album and Faye's vocals has gotten a little stronger also. The thing about this album is that Ian (the music director and part of FIR) has kinda made chinese pop a little too mainstream with the incorporation of Real's song writing.
One of the songs just dun really agree with my senses but then again, they have such great chemistry that overall, the album is a welcome from their last.
This particular sound track is really nice, something really different from most local productions. Haven't got a chance to catch this movie by Royston Tan but I will definitely get the DVD when it's out.
Yesterday was a whirlwind... and in doing so, I have set in motion the cogs of events to come.
Visited A & V in Mt. A yesterday... hahah, the little Man-Utd baby is so active even when sleeping, constantly twisting his head and licking his lips (think he could be hungry already) and soon enough, he started crying.. hahah.. so cute :)
Went off to Thomson Plaza with Ms Clover afterwards for foot reflexology @ Tranquility Cove (affiliated with Serenity Cove in Holland Village). Now that there's one that's near Ms Clover's place, we can save money in transport coz we used to go all the way down to Holland Village every now and then just to get a fix. The foot masseur was really darn good @ Tranquuility, getting rid of the stress and fatique from my legs and back... after the session, I was floating out of the centre... sigh... Me is getting old liao...
On rainy days like today... I love to pop in downtempo music to chill and do some work and recently, this artist has caught my eyes - Desert Chang (TW)
I love her voice man! She started singing live in music lounges in Taipei and rose to be a very good performer with her guitar and voice. Her 1st album was a hit on the music charts. When I first heard her CD "my life will..." a while back, I thought she really has a certain quality in her voice so I went ahead to get it and now it's my regular CD in my Hi-Fi on days like these...
(張懸 - my life will...)
Official Sony BMG website for Deserts Chang - click here
the korean film 미녀는 괴로워 (200 pounds beauty) last night. Man, it is a fabulous film that tackled issues between what is the real and what is the fake and what is important in the end. That concert scene near the end is indeed touching...
Kim Ah-Joong is fantastically beautiful while singing the rock version of "Maria" !
I think she looks darn good with rebonded hair though (pic from Hancinema.net)
She doesn't really strike you with her beauty at 1st glance but as we progressed thru the film, she just grows on you. I find her to look a little like the imp-ish looking Vivian Hsu and Kate Yeung (who acted as one of the leads in Eternal Summer 2006)
Me getting the coundtracks liao... this film has really nice songs like this one. Thumbs upzzz!
What's with these MVs of stereotypical Korean guys being a photographer, the pretty girls, the accidents and the ultimate sacrifice ? Kinda like the MV by KISS - Becoz I'm a girl
..... ah well, it doesn't matter coz Linda Liao is the female cast :p Here's a very cute Making-Of of the MV. The song 'Forever' is light and nice. Can't believe I'm advocating Korean songs now...
